A Family Affair
by piperh4lliwell
Summary: Richard and Emily had a habit of pushing away those closest to them, Lorelai left with a baby Rory at age seventeen and four years later their oldest daughter Victoria ran away with her baby girl Holly. Introducing Holly and Victoria Gilmore, follow their lives as they begin to reconnect with the rich society and the family they left behind.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hi all, this is a story I thought of one day and my muse has been begging me to write it. I haven't seen any stories like it before so it'll be a new and interesting twist. If you're following my other story "Say You Won't Let Go," I'm hoping to update it soon so keep an eye out. As always, read & review. Reviews always inspire me to keep writing when I know its being read. Thank you!

 **XXXXX**

As the stars twinkled in the thick black sky on a cold winter's night a young woman was quickly packing her bags. Anything she could see she began to stuff into three different duffel bags as her child sat quietly on a chair in the sitting room. The woman could feel her child's big blue eyes staring at her in fear wondering why her Mommy was acting so erratically but that didn't matter right now. What mattered was leaving and she had to do it now. Every so often she would glance at the clock and let out a groan when she felt it was going by too fast. Why couldn't time just slow down? Once she had thrown all of her belongings into the duffel bags she zipped them shut. She checked her purse to ensure she had enough money to last the mother and child duo until she could sort herself out and she laid the tear stained note that had many scribbles and crossing outs on the dresser and ran down the stairs as quickly as possible. She bundled her baby into the car and swung the duffel bags beside her and she immediately drove off without looking back. As she began to drive out of the city of Hartford, she let out a breath of relief. Finally, she had done it. She had escaped the clutches of her parents and she was free. She had been planning this day for months, making sure the timing was correct, ensuring her parents would be out of the house long enough to sort her and her baby out. Suddenly, her child let out a cry causing the woman to sigh "its okay my love, we'll be okay," she soothed "We'll be okay now,"

 **XXXXX**

 _ **Twelve years later.**_

It was a bright day, the wind was blowing gently in the breeze and the sun was just starting to emerge from behind the clouds, it was the perfect weather for a baseball game. A young teenager was stood on the pitch scanning the bleachers for her mother, she let out a sigh, and of course she hadn't made it. She was grabbed from her thoughts when her friend approached her.

"Come on," her friend urged "Coach Bear wants a quick team meeting before the game starts," she pulled her hand dragged her over to the team. A few minutes later the game began and the young teenager forgot about her mother not being there.

 **XXXX**

After the game had finished, the young teenager was dropped home by her friend's mother, she was unhappy that the team had lost but she knew she had played well and she couldn't wait to tell her mother all about it. She bounced into the house and called out for her mother. She searched the sitting room, she checked her bedroom and eventually she went into the kitchen. She noticed a handwritten note propped up on the kitchen table and she let out a sigh. She had seen that one too many a time. She picked it up and scanned it "Delayed at work, lasagne in the fridge, don't wait up, Love you, Mom XO," the young girl crumbled up the note in frustration and threw it in the bin and let out a sob. However she soon felt guilty as she knew her mother wasn't trying to be malicious or to hurt her intentionally she just didn't have her priorities in the right place. The teenager couldn't remember the last time her and her mom had spent the whole day together, just the two of them, sure they saw each other in the evenings, maybe a quick chat over dinner but then they would go their separate ways, she had to complete her homework and her mother had to finish her work. It mustn't be easy doing it all by herself, raising a child, bringing in the income with absolutely no help.

It hadn't always been this way, Holly had a great childhood, she could remember her mother taking her for walks in the park, feeding the ducks, they always had mother – daughter days together but three years previous her mother had gotten a promotion, their rent had increased and Holly had to start thinking about her future, what college she wanted to go and her mother had to start thinking of how to finance it all therefore her only option was to work. Holly took the plastic off of her lasagne and began to heat it up, she began to think of what she would do for the remainder of the day. It was a Saturday afternoon, she had to do _something._ Anything at all that wasn't school related or homework – anything but homework. Homework was to be done on a Sunday evening, rushing her written work and cramming in all of her study work. Holly hated school and she wasn't going to pretend otherwise, she was an average student, usually B's maybe an A but she wasn't pushed, she didn't care that much. She contemplated ringing a few of her friends to hang out but she remembered they were busy. Sophie, her best friend, was at a wedding. Molly and Mia the twins were at their grandfather's 90th birthday party and Belinda's cousins from Ireland had come on a holiday. Cousins, grandparents, a wedding. Holly sighed, she had none of them. She knew absolutely nothing about her extended family, all of her life it had just been her and her mother, them against the world. Her father had died when she was 2, she couldn't remember him but her mother told her stories all of the time.

She had a picture of him beside her bed side locker. When she was younger she used to talk to him all of the time, tell him stories of her day, tell him about all of her friends, whenever she had an argument with her mom, how much she missed him and wished that she could remember him. Her mother had never talked about her family, she knew nothing about her parents, if she had any sisters or brothers, and all she knew about her father's family was that he was an only child and his father had died when he was young, his mother had died shortly after Holly's birth. She could tell her mother was fond of them, she would often mention them in stories and how they use to act and the nice things they did for Holly's parent's and Holly herself. However, there was never a mention of her maternal family. One day she had accidently stumbled upon a photo of Holly's grandmother – well she presumed it was her grandmother, it was a lady with red hair holding a baby – whom Holly presumed was her. She mentioned it to her mother and got given out to – Holly realised it was safer never to ask again. She often wondered why they never got in contact, it was clear they liked her at some point, so why not now? Perhaps it was because Holly's mother had her at a young age? 20 was young but that young and plus, Holly's parents were married so it shouldn't' have been that big of an issue, Holly began to eat her dinner, life was very strange.

 **XXX**

6 o clock had come and Holly was slouched on the sofa in front of the television. She had been in the same position for 4 hours. 4 freaking hours in a row bar the exception of getting up to get a chocolate bar. She sighed, she needed a hobby or even something to do. Suddenly the doorbell rang, she contemplated leaving it ring out but then she realised she needed an excuse to actually get up and stop being a couch potatoes. She opened the door to a tall man in a suit, he had a frantic expression on his face and a piece of paper in front of him.

The man smiled as she opened it "Hi?" questioned Holly "May I help you?" she wasn't to open the doors to strangers but this man looked harmless, sweet almost.

"Do you know of any Gilmore's in this area?" he asked, she could see the hope in his eyes "I know it's this town but I lost the street address, I've been knocking on doors all day,"

Holly shook her head "No, I'm sorry," she replied.

His face fell "This is the 82nd house I've knocked on. The 82nd," he let out a sigh "I counted. I counted how many houses I knocked on,"

Holly wasn't sure what to say "Sorry,"

The man shook his head "It's alright,"

"What do they look like? Have you a picture, I could keep an eye out?"

The man's face lit up "You would? I do somewhere, mind it's very old," he began to fumble in his wallet "I must clean this thing out," he pulled out a business card "That's my number if you need to contact me, I have one somewhere,"

Holly took the card and put it in her pocket "Perfect, what do they look like?"

"Oh right well it's a woman and a teenager I'm looking for. The woman is a brunette, blue eyes, relatively tall," he pulled out a picture of a woman "That's her sister, she would probably look like her," Holly smiled at the picture of the mother and daughter on the picture, for a moment she felt she recognised them but quickly shook off the feeling.

"Ah here we go," he said with a smile "My daughter and grand daughter," he handed her the photo and her heart nearly stopped with the shock. She stared at the man and then back to the photo. She couldn't find the words to speak. That was _her._ That was her and her mother, Holly had that exact photo framed in her bedroom. She couldn't form a sentence, she couldn't even think clearly, she just didn't know what to do.

"Um, wh-what are their names?" she stammered quietly.

The man sighed "Victoria and Holly Gilmore," he paused "My daughter Victoria fled one night twelve years ago and took her daughter – my grand daughter with her and we haven't been able to find them ever since, please if you find out anything let me know,"

A tear formed in Holly's eye "Yeah," she said quietly "I will do,"

The man extended his hand "Pleasure to meet you, I'm Richard Gilmore," he began to walk to his car "What age are you?" he asked.

"I'm-I'm nearly 15,"

"Same age she would be now," he noted "You might see her in school, Holly Gilmore,"

Holly nodded "May-Maybe," she stammered again and she watched as the grandfather she never got to know drove away. She began to feel a boiling rage towards her mother, how dare she flee from her family with Holly, how dare she deprive Holly of a family. And that picture of her mother's sister? She had auntie for crying out loud, and a cousin. She had a cousin. She could barely believe it. She decided she was going to confront her mother about this and go find her family. She needed to do this, she walked into the house and began to plan out how she was going to tackle this issue with her mother, she wasn't going to give her a choice about going to go meet them, she was going to demand it, she would make sure of that.

 **XXXX**

 **A/N:** Thoughts? I have a lot planned for this story so I hope I get a bit of feedback. Thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hi, thank you for your kind reviews. This is the next chapter. I forgot to mention this story is after 3x17: A Tale Of Poes & Fires so the fire at the Inn has happened. Thank you & don't forget to read and review please. Disclaimer: I don't own GG

XXXXXXX

Holly had been sitting in the siting room for hours when she heard the door slam shut. She had decided to stay awake for when her mother arrived home and she would confront her. She was still in shock, she just couldn't believe that _her_ grandfather had come knocking on her door. Her fully functioning, able to speak, kind old grandfather. He was real. He existed. She was determined to get to know him. She knew her mother would forbid it but she didn't care. It was the type of thing you heard on the news or that you watch in a movie, you never think it's going to happen to you. He seemed like such a lovely man, he had a nice aura, she felt.

She wondered if she had a grandmother. He never mentioned a wife, perhaps she had died? Holly hoped not because she would feel terribly upset if she never got to meet her grandmother. The door opened and her tired looking mother traipsed inn. She had a frown on her face when she noticed her daughter sitting in front of her. She gave her a questioning look "Holls, why are you up?" she enquired as she made her way to the kettle.

"Oh, I can't sleep," she replied following her to the kitchen table.

"How was your day?"

"Good,"

Her mother nodded "I'm glad," she yawned "God, I'm starving,"

Holly pursed her lips together unsure of how to approach the subject "Someone called to the house today," she said "A poor old man missing his kid,"

Her mother looked alarmed "What, a missing child? Did you know them? That's awful!"

"Yeah, tragic," said Holly sarcastically "He left a card in case we knew of any information," she handed the card to her mother and studied her facial expression carefully,"

"Oh, of course, anything to help, I might know him," she glanced at the card and froze when she saw the name. She couldn't even form a sentence. Her mind began to go into panic mode, how had her family found her? She had done everything in her power to stay hidden so that no one, no matter how rich or important they were could find them. How could this happen?

"What's wrong Mom?"

Victoria shook her head "Oh uh nothing, I'll uh keep that safe," she said as she crumbled up in her pocket.

Holly narrowed her eyes. Was her mother just going to ignore this and brush it under the carpet.

"Mom, I know,"

Victoria gulped; she had hoped her daughter would have remained clueless about the entire situation, she couldn't even begin to explain the complicated situation to her daughter. Would she understand? Would she want to meet her grandparents?

"Know what, sweetie?"

Holly's face boiled with anger "I'm not a child anymore mother, I know that he was my grandfather and I also know that you took me away from my family,"

Victoria looked away from her daughter, she was not going to feel bad about this "I did what I had to do," she said quietly "It was for the best,"

"Best for who? For you? What about me? Did you even consider me in this whole decision?"

Victoria slammed the table "I did it all for you, I took you away from that greedy world of society women and their snobbish ways. I took you away from the controlling ways of my parents. I did it all for you. I left for you," she stood up "I am not talking about this anymore Holly Bruce, I am your mother and you will not speak to me that way,"

Holy glared at her "But I'm not a Bruce, am I? I'm a Gilmore,"

"Of course you're a Bruce, that was your father's surname," she scoffed "You have never been a Gilmore and you never will be," replied Victoria starkly.

"I want to meet them," announced Holly "I want to meet my grandparents,"

Victoria shook her head "That will never happen," she said "That's the end of it, go to bed," and with that she left the kitchen leaving her daughter in a sulk.

XXXXXX

Holly stalked up to her bedroom in anger, how dare her mother forbid her from getting in contact with her family. She had no right. She took out her laptop and began to search the web for these Gilmore's. She wanted to find out more about them and she intended to find them wherever they were and meet them.

She typed in "Richard Gilmore," as that was all she had. Stories about a famous singer popped up which she guessed was not him. She scrolled down and kept on scrolling until she could find something informative. Eventually she found an article that was not related to a singer and she clicked into it.

The headline read **FIRE! FIRE! INN'D OF AN ERA!**

 **Last Monday night there was a fire in the small town of Stars Hallow located just outside of the city of Hartford. It started in the middle of the night and caused a major disruption in the town. Lorelai Gilmore, the manager of the inn, has said that they hope to restore the damages and re open eventually but for the moment it is closed. Local Villagers are shocked at what has happened to the Inn that has been present in their community for so long. A local man named Kirk has said he is the town builder and hopes to take on the job of restoring the Inn to what it was.**

Holly frowned. No mention of Richard but of a Lorelai? Could this be her aunt, that woman in the picture? She googled the name Lorelai Gilmore and she found an article on a young girl named Rory Gilmore, it had a picture of the young girl named Rory with an older looking woman and her grandfather. She felt a twinge of excitement as she stared at the picture. This was them. This was her family. Now all she had to do was find them.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Thank you for your feedback. I always love hearing your reviews!

 **XXXX**

If there was one word to describe Holly Bruce it would be: planner. She loved to plan every single event down to the last second, she had always been that way. She planned her days out with her friends, her football matches and even her school days which were already planned for her. She was a perfectionist. She blamed her mother for that trait, Victoria was the exact same. Her entire childhood had been a plan but she loved it. She loved to have a plan.

So the search she had conducted for her grandparents was no different, she decided to take a few days to carry out her plan. She had to make sure every single detail was thought of, nothing could fall apart. She had decided to forgive her mother, or at least let her mother think she had forgiven her. Her mother apologized for what she had done but she was still sticking to her guns, she did the right thing and if she had the chance to change anything she wouldn't. "It was for us," she kept saying "Your life would have been hell," but Holly didn't believe her. How could having a family be hell?

For her plan to succeed she had to make sure her mother was gone long enough to not notice her missing which was actually the easiest part. Her mother was always working long hours and was barely home so that wouldn't be an issue. Her main problem was money. Yes, she got pocket money but it wasn't enough to cover transport, food and accommodation. She had decided the easiest option was to stay overnight in Hartford as she wanted extra time with her family and she did hope her grandparents would let her stay at their house but she didn't want to rely too much on that option, what if they were as horrible as her mother made them out to be? She asked her friends for loans from their pocket money and after she had explained her situation they were only too happy to help, her best friend Sophie knew how much this meant to her so added an extra ten dollars onto the 20 she had already given her. In total, she had an extra 70 dollars from her friends along with the 20 dollars from her pocket money and the 20 she stole from her mother's purse. That was 110 dollars, would that be enough? She decided it would be and if she got stuck she knew her mother was only a phone call away.

So exactly two weeks after Holly had met her grandfather she began to walk in the direction to the school, she walked and walked until she knew her mother had drove out of sight and she quickly changed to the bus stop. She changed in the bathrooms and waited for the bus, once it arrived she hopped on and began to grow more excited about her trip to Hartford.

3 hours later, the bus drove into the city of Hartford. Holly began to grow more nervous than excited at this point, so many questions began to circle in her head, what if they didn't like her? She did not want to think about that prospect. She gazed out the window and admired the city, she had never been here before, well not that she could remember. She had obviously been here as a baby If her grandparents had lived here. The bus stopped and she got out. This was where the real mystery was, where did her grandparents live? She only knew it was in Hartford but this was a big city and they could be anywhere.

She decided to walk around and ask random people, she knew it would look strange but she didn't care. She passed many people and asked for Richard Gilmore but nobody could tell her, she sighed in frustration, maybe he didn't even live here anymore? What if he was on holiday? Then she remembered the name Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, those were the names of the girls online, maybe someone would know them? She walked and walked, she asked and asked but nobody knew of them, this was becoming a lost cause. It was now 4pm and she had been walking around Hartford for over 3 hours to no avail.

She walked by a fancy looking school called Chilton where crowds of teenagers in fancy uniforms were leaving. Surely someone in here would know them? She approached a blonde teenager and cleared her throat "Excuse me, do you know a Richard Gilmore?"

The young man shook his head "I'm sorry no," and walked away to his group of friends, she asked a few more people who all were clueless? Did her family even live here, why didn't anyone know them?

Suddenly a blonde haired girl walked up to Holly and glared at her curiously "Richard Gilmore? Why are you looking for him?"

Holly sighed "It's a long story but do you know him?"

The girl nodded "I know of him, his granddaughter is in my class," Holly's eyes grew wide with excitement, his granddaughter was her cousin, she wondered what she was like.

Holly looked around "Is she here?"

"Probably gone to get the bus to her precious town," scoffed the blonde haired girl "Can you believe such a small town with no hidden scandals? It's ridiculous, I still believe something sinister goes on there, you mark my words,"

Holly was taken back by how forward this girl was, she was ranting to a complete stranger and Holly was abit fearful of interrupting "Do you know where they live?"

She nodded "Just walk down straight past the park, take a left, its right beside a yellow house. You can't miss,"

Holly nodded "Thank you so much," she smiled "Nice to meet you," The girl extended her hand and shook Holly's "I'm Paris,"

Holly smiled "Holly," and with that she walked away to find her grandparents.

 **XXXXXXX**

Holly followed the directions as she had been given but when she arrived to her grandparents supposed house she couldn't help but feel she went wrong somewhere, this was not a house, and this was a castle. She gaped at it in awe, did people actually live here? The entire street was full of mansions, she couldn't help but wonder were her grandparents rich? She walked up the driveway timidly further doubting that they actually lived here, it was a palace. The royal family could almost live here. She stopped at the front door and wondered should she ring the doorbell. She hesitated and took a deep breath, she couldn't bring herself to do it. She decided to explore first, see what it was fully like. She crept around the side and gasped, there was a massive pool and a house beside the pool? Another house, why would they even need another house. She walked closer to it hoping to get a peek inside when she heard a shrill shriek.

"Stop right there," came the stern voice of an old woman, she turned around to see a red haired woman walk over to her, she recognized the woman from the picture in the newspaper article with her grandfather, she guessed that this was her grandmother, what a great first impression she was making.

She could feel her grandmother's death glare "You have two seconds to explain why you are breaking into my personal property," she shrieked as Holly's face turned a bright red, she felt like she was resembling a tomato.

"I'm not-I'm not," she stammered "I'm not breaking in,"

Her grandmother raised her eyebrows "Oh you're not? Then how else can you explain your actions? You suddenly decided to go for a dip in the pool. Why not try a random person's pool, wouldn't that be fun?" she said sarcastically.

Holly could feel the tears burning in her eyes, she couldn't believe this was happening, she did not want to be how she met her grandparents for the first time. "I-I-,"

Her grandmother laughed "Exactly, you were planning on breaking in," she eyed Holly "You can't be any more then 15," she observed "Who are you working for?"

"I'm not-," she began to protest "I'm not working for anybody,"

"I'm calling the police,"

"No!" she exclaimed "I'm your granddaughter. I'm Holly Bruce. My mother is Victoria Gilmore and I've come to meet you,"

Her grandmother froze. She stared at the young girl in front of her and Holly breathed a sigh of relief. She was finally able to get the words out.

"Richard," whispered Emily "Richard,"

Holly stared at her in confusion, what was she trying to say. Emily ran away from Holly and back into the house yelling her grandfather's name, Holly sighed, she was hoping they wouldn't be disappointed with her but she didn't understand her grandmother's reaction, she was expecting a hug maybe. She walked after her grandmother slowly into the house where she heard "Richard," being repeated over and over again. She saw her grandmother dragging her grandfather into the sitting room. She caught sight of Holly and pointed "It's her,"

Richard put on his glasses and nodded "You're the young girl I spoke to a couple of weeks back, yes? If you had any information you could have called,"

Emily shook him "No, Richard it's her," she said "It's Holly,"

Richard gasped slightly "No," he whispered "No, you can't be you-,"

Holly nodded "I am," she paused "I figured it out when you told me you were looking for a Holly and Victoria and my mother confirmed my suspicions that night,"

A tear trickled down Emily's face "Your mother? Is she here?"

Holly shook her head "No, just me," and with that Emily rushed over and enveloped her long lost granddaughter into a big hug. Holly could feel the tightness and the love, she noticed how her grandmother clung to her for several minutes as if she was going to lose her again.

Richard smiled widely "I'm so glad you came," and gave her a hug "I'm so glad we've finally found you,"

"I'll get Rosalina to make dinner, what's your favourite food,"

Holly shook her head "There's no need,"

"There's every need," commented Richard "You're home. You're finally home you can have anything you want,"

"Steak," smiled Holly "I like steak,"

Emily nodded "Steak it is," she paused and looked at Richard "What day is it?"

"Wednesday dear,"

Emily frowned "Are you sure it's not Friday? Wouldn't it be nice if Lorelai and Rory came over to meet Holly?"

Richard shook his head "No, it's Wednesday. Lorelai's birthday is Friday, remember?"

Emily sighed "So it is," she smiled at Holly "Another time,"

 **XXXX**

Holly couldn't think of a nicer evening. She had been treated like a queen all day. Her grandmother had the maid make Steak for her, she gave her chocolate cake and cookies and then she was sat on the settee drinking tea with both of her grandparents. There was no awkwardness at all and the conversation had been flowing all night, she felt so happy.

"We should call your mother and let her know you're here," said Richard nervously "She'll be worried,"

Emily scoffed "Nonsense, she's had 12 years with the girl we've had two hours,"

Holly thought about it "She might be a little worried," she said, as angry as she was with her mother she didn't want to worry her. She knew her mother would be stressed if she came home to find her daughter wasn't there.

Richard handed her the phone "Call her,"

Holy nodded and dialled her number, it rang out the first time and then she tried again. Finally her mother answered.

"Victoria Bruce speaking,"

"Hi Mom,"

"Hol? Are you okay, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she said "I, um, are you home?"

"No sweetie, not until 12, aren't you?"

Holly took a deep breath "I'm-I'm," she glanced at her grandfather who gave her an encouraging nod "Just tell her," he assured her "It'll be okay,"

"Who's that?" came her mother's worried voice "Holly where are you?"

"I'm-'m in Hartford with my grandparents," she blurted out.

There was a silence on the other end of the phone, her mother was quiet for longer then Holly would have liked. "You're what?"

"I'm sitting in your childhood home with your parents,"

"I can't believe you did this," she said quietly "I can't believe you ruined my plan, our plan. Our lives. Holly how could you be so stupid?"

A tear trickled down Holly's face "Don't be mad. I just wanted to meet them,"

Emily grabbed the phone from Holly startling her "Now young lady, my granddaughter had every right to come here and meet your father and I, we are her grandparents and we care a lot for her, she obviously wants us to be in her live and you can't control that. Now stop this nonsense and don't blame that poor girl for what you did," Emily gasped "She cut off,"

Holly bit her lip, she wondered what would happen now, and would her mother come to get her? She shook her head, probably not, which was good as she wanted as much time with her grandparents before her mother could snatch it away.

The phone rang and Emily answered "Hello?" but the line went dead, this happened two more times when Holly finally reached a conclusion "Why don't I answer?" when the phone rang again, Holly answered.

"I'm coming," came her mother's voice "I'll ring this phone when I'm outside and come out to me," she said before hanging up again. Holly looked at her grandparent's and sighed.


	4. Chapter 4

**XXX**

Holly sat nervously in her grandparents sitting room. She kept glancing at the clock which was going by far too fast for her liking, she was dreading her mother's reaction. As angry as she was at her mother she didn't want her mother to be mad at her. She loved her mom and although she didn't spend as much time with her as shed like she still loved her. Would her mother be sad? She didn't want to make her sad, she obviously left this place for a reason but because it was right for her didn't mean it had to be right for Holly. Holly was a different person to her mother, she was growing up and she was developing as a person and as an individual and her mother wasn't able to control her anymore.

She could feel her grandparents staring at her. All three of them were sitting in silence afraid of what was to come. Would they be separated again? Would Holly be able to come back and visit? None of them wanted to ask the obvious mostly out of fear. It was a scary thought.

Finally, Emily let out a sigh "This is ridiculous," she said "Why are we letting her control us? We should be happy. Our grand daughter is home," she took a massive sip of her wine. Richard patted her arm "There now Emily, it'll be okay. We'll arrange something," he smiled at Holly "Now that we have her, we're not letting her go again," causing Holly to smile.

 **XXXX**

The phone rang which meant only one thing, it was time to leave. Holly let out a sigh and turned to her grandparents who gave her a big hug. They clung to her for a few minutes before releasing her from their tight grip. "I hope I get to see you again," she said "I enjoyed today,"

Her grandfather nodded "You will. I'll make sure of it," he said. Holly kissed them on the cheek and walked nervously out to her car where her mother was staring the other direction. She opened the door and slowly got in. She waited for the angry rant but none came. Her mother drove out of Hartford and there was silence for the entire journey.

Once they arrived at their house in Boston her mother got out of the car and walked straight to her bedroom. Nothing was said, not even a single word. Holly wasn't sure what to think. She wished her mother give out, saying nothing was absolutely killing her. Holly didn't like the silent treatment.

 **XXXX**

As the next few days passed, nothing had changed in the Bruce household. No word was mentioned about Holly's escapade to Hartford. Her mother prepared her breakfast, dinner and supper as per usual and went to work as normal. She said the bare minimum to her daughter and Holly was distraught. The mood in the house had shifted drastically and it was no longer the happy household it once was. It was sad, cold and the tension between mother and daughter was increasing every day. Holly wasn't sure what to do.

5 days after she had been in Hartford her best friend Sophie came over for the evening and Holly vented out all of her worries and burdens to her. She explained everything.

"Wow," said her friend "That is so crazy,"

Holly sighed "I know,"

"It's kind of like a soap, isn't it? Your mother ran away, your grandparents had been searching for you for years," she shook her head in disbelief "Are you going to talk to your mom about it? It's not good to keep it in y'know,"

Holly shrugged "She won't even talk to me in general, let alone about the people she hates the most in the world," she paused "I wonder why she hates them?"

"It's dramatic alright," said Sophie "Something big must have happened,"

Suddenly the door opened and her tired looking mother walked through the door. She looked at the two girls and gave Sophie a smile "Hi Soph,"

Sophie smiled in return "Hi Victoria,"

Holly laughed "Oh my god, you'll say hi to Sophie and not to me," she stood up "I am so sick of this Mom. Will you freaking talk to me? This is ridiculous,"

Victoria rolled her eyes "Not in front of Soph, please Holly,"

"Soph knows everything so no biggie,"

Victoria raised her eyebrow "Good ol' giving out session about me I take it? What lovely things were you saying about your mother behind her back?"

Holly went red with anger "No I needed someone to talk to because my mother was ignoring me and seeing as I was taken away from my family who else do I freaking have Mom? Who else? I don't have you clearly, I don't have my aunt or my cousin because I wasn't told about so excuse me for not wanting to go freaking insane," she let out a breath, she stared at her mother coldly, she wasn't finished just yet "I'm sick of this. I'm sick of you. I did nothing wrong. This is all your fault, not mine."

Victoria bit her lip "Holly I'm your mother….,"

"I don't care. I don't care! Just because you're my mother doesn't mean you get to decide everything for me. If you don't stop all of this I'm leaving,"

Victoria laughed "And where will you go?"

Holly didn't even hesitate before replying "Hartford," causing Sophie to gasp.

"You wouldn't,"

"Watch me," and with that she walked out of the room. She would go to Hartford if her mother didn't stop her ways. She wasn't going to roll over and let her mother control her like this. She was in charge of her life and she was going to leave. She didn't care anymore.

 **XXXXX**

Once Sophie and left her mother came into her room. Holly refused to look at her. Her mother sat on the side of her bed. "Babe," she began softly "I'm not mad at you," Holly didn't respond.

"I-," she continued "I just had to," she paused "I don't expect you to understand right now but maybe one day you will," she let out a sigh "I don't want them in my life but I know that's not fair to you."

Holly let out a sigh but still didn't say anthing to her mother.

"Your grandfather rang me today," she admitted causing Holly to look at her mother "It was strange. So strange to hear his voice after so many years," she rubbed her thumb "I nearly hung up on him but I didn't. He begged me to let you see them. For them to see you. I never heard him beg in my life. He explained everything to me. How you are a teenager now, you are growing up and you'll be gone from the nest soon," a tear trickled down her face "He said did I really want you to leave me like I left them? Did I want to experience that pain? He also apolgozed. He realised how wrong he and my mother were when I was younger," she let out a sigh "I agreed,"

Holly's face lit up "You-you agreed?" she asked "To letting me see them?"

Victoria nodded "But there's rules to be followed. I am in charge not them. I won't let them control this situation,"

Holly nodded, she would agree to anything as long as she got to know her family.

"Once a month, no sleepovers," she said "He didn't like it at first but he agreed. He's hoping it'll lead to further visits but if I don't like their attitude then I have the power to veto,"

Holly bit her lip "Once a month? That's hardly enough?"

"Ill see how the first visit goes, I might change to twice a month,"

Holly sighed. She'd take it, something was better then nothing. She hugged her mom "I love you, I'm never going to leave you," and snuggled into her.

 **XXXXX**

A/N: Sorry for the short chapter. Don't forget to read and review please.


	5. Chapter 5

Days had passed since Victoria had agreed to let Holly build a relationship with her grandparents and still there was no sign of contact between them. She was frustrated that her mother wouldn't talk about it, every time Holly mentioned it her mother would shrug it off and act as if it wasn't important – but it was. Every day she brought it up in some way and every day she received a grunt in response until one day both mother and daughter were sat at the kitchen table together (a rare occurrence) and Holly decided to interrogate her mother.

"Mom," she said as she played with her food on the plate "Have you rang Richard and Emily?"

Her mother sighed in response and was silent for a few moments, Holly suspected she was trying to think of an excuse to delay the process further.

"I'm trying Holly," she said "I'm really trying for you. Every day I go to pick up the phone but I just can't do it. I don't want to get trapped back into that world. I know it's not fair for me to drag you away with me so I will do it," she paused "But not right now,"

Holly bit her lip as she heard the quiver in her mother's voice, she had never seen her mother look so fragile before. She hadn't taken her mother's feelings into consideration in this whole agreement and she felt bad. She forgot how difficult it would be for her mother, of course it would be, and she left for a reason clearly. No sane person would take their three year old kid away from a stable home.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled "I didn't think. I just wanted to make sure it would still happen" she explained.

Victoria smiled reassuring "It will sweetheart. Just give me a few more days please,"

 **XOXOXO**

Holly felt much better after her conversation with her mother and felt more confident that she would get to see her grandparents soon. She understood why her mother was so hesitant and she felt bad for her so she was happy to wait. Once dinner was finished she decided to go over to her best friend's house for a quick pick-me up session, she needed to confide in her best friend about what was happening.

"I don't know Holl," said Sophie hesitantly after Holly had told her everything that had happened "I'm not sure your mom will ring," causing Holly to frown.

"Why?" asked Holly "She said she would?"

Sophie rolled her eyes "Holly your Mom is the flakiest person in the world, how many matches has she promised she would come to? How many school events did she tell you she would be at?" Sophie paused "I've been your best friend since preschool and I know you and your mother better than anyone. It's not happening,"

Holly sighed. She had a point, her mother was always making promises and could never stick to them, she almost envied Sophie's mother, she was always at every event that was important to Sophie, she cooked home-made meals as opposed to the frozen meals Holly got and she worked a normal 9-5 day so Sophie got to see her all of the time.

"So what do I do?" she asked "How do I make sure I see them?"

Sophie paused for a moment "Don't you have an aunt or something?"

Holly nodded "Yeah, I don't know much about her though. I found a newspaper article that says she owns an Inn but that's it,"

"Where?"

"Um, a small town outside of Hartford. I can't remember the name, Stars something, I must check it again," she said.

"Why don't you go visit them?" suggested Sophie "Suss them out?"

Holly frowned "I don't know when I could go? We have exams soon and I can't miss slack off anymore, I'm already behind as it is,"

"We have four free periods tomorrow, you'll miss nothing!" exclaimed Sophie "You should go,"

"I have no money,"

Sophie went through her drawer and took a 50 dollar note out. "Take it," she said "Consider it a loan,"

 **XOXOXO**

Holly never did anything without planning it first. She had to plan it out in her head, write it down and think about it for a few days before she could go through with anything but at 10.30am she found herself on a bus to Hartford – again. She had found out the proper name of the town her aunt lived in – Stars Hallow. She thought it sounded pretty, she hoped it was a nice town. She found out that there was a bus that went from Hartford to Stars Hallow but she was unsure of the times which stressed her out but there was nothing she could do. She was on a bus – there was no going back.

Once she reached Hartford she felt a sense of familiarity which she liked. It was a nice feeling, she walked up to the ticket box.

"Hi, is there a bus going to Stars Hallow?" she asked.

The ticket woman gave her a strange look "What age are you?"

"16," she lied "I-I'm um visiting my aunt for the weekend. I have the day off school," she impressed herself, she didn't think she had it in her to lie that fast.

The woman nodded and printed off a ticket "Next bus is in an hour," she said. Holly took the ticket and waited for the next bus to arrive.

 **XOXO**

It was 2.30 by the time she arrived into Stars Hallow and she was famished with the hunger. She only had 10 dollars left so she had to use it wisely, she hoped there was a nice café within walking distance of the bus stop. She hopped off the bus and stared at the town in amazement, everything was so _quaint_. There were people talking on the streets, a man singing with a guitar, there was even a gazebo in the middle of the town. You barely saw that in Boston, no one even knew their neighbours let alone people on the street. She got a very homely vibe. She walked around to get a feel for the place – she really liked it. She was interrupted from her thoughts when she got a tap on the shoulder.

"Excuse me," came the serious voice of a man startling her. She turned around to see a middle aged man with a leaflet staring at her.

"Hi," said Holly nervously.

"I see that you're new in this town, I was just scrubbing my mother's back when I saw you walking past the gazebo. I quickly ran out to offer my services,"

Holly wasn't sure what to say, everything the strange man said startled her so she just nodded and hoped he would go away.

"I'm Kirk," he said "I am the go to guy for everything in this town. Anything you need, I can do," he said proudly. "Now I must go because Mother will be very angry that I left in such a hurry, excuse me," He handed her a leaflet and walked away.

Holly didn't even have time to be confused when the loudest voice she had ever heard yelled "Oi Sugah, you okay?" she turned around to see a blonde woman approach her. "Sugah, that was just Kirk, he's harmless," she said with a smile.

Holly nodded "I just – I didn't expect that," she said with a smile. She bit her lip "Um, do you know a Lorelai Gilmore, she runs the Independence Inn?"

"Lorelai? Do I ever, she's my neighbour?"

"She is? Where does she live?"

The woman shook her head "She won't be home for ages. She'll be at the Inn until 4 and then she usually goes to Luke's diner to meet Rory at 4.30,"

Holly frowned "Luke's?"

"The diner," the blonde woman pointed at a building "Right there, Luke's burgers. He's a funny fella, he's very grumpy but a sweetheart underneath,"

Holly smiled "Thank you, I'm Holly," she extended her hand "I'm Babette,"

"Nice to meet you, Babette," she said and walked straight to Luke's. She had two hours until she would come face to face with her aunt and cousin and she couldn't wait.

 **XOXO**

She walked into Luke's diner and it was practically empty. She wondered where the best place to sit would be – where would she notice them come in? She decided the corner seat would be best as she could hide in the background but still see everything. She sat down and scanned the menu everything looked so nice and she was starving, she decided on a burger and fries. Within minutes, a man with a baseball cap and a flannel shirt approached her, she could only guess it was Luke.

"Hi," she smiled "I'll have the burger and fries with a glass of orange please,"

Luke raised an eyebrow "What age are you?"

"16," she lied again.

"You're young. You've time to change your ways. Don't eat that stuff," he warned her "It'll kill you,"

Holly was confused, wasn't he supposed to promote his food to earn more money "No burger and fries will be fine," she said politely.

"Dead cow and fatty potatoes it is," he said and walked away. Holly put in her headphones and took out a book, she might as well get stuck in while she was waiting.

 **XOXOX**

Lorelai Gilmore practically fell in through the door of the diner. She had no coffee for an hour and she was gasping. She could barely breathe she was so deprived. She rushed to the counter and sat on the seat. "Lucas," she cried loudly "Coffee, please!" Seconds later, Luke appeared from the kitchen with a freshly brewed pot of coffee.

"It's like you smelled it," he said gruffly as he poured her a cup.

"Well I am the coffee queen," she said as she took a sip, she let out a deep breath of relief "I feel so alive right now. For the past hour it's like I've been stuck in this deep, dark hole with nowhere to go and now this coffee has given me the will to go on," she babbled.

Luke raised his eyebrow and said nothing. Rory walked into the diner and sat beside her mother "Hi Mom,"

"Oh if it isn't my precious human that I created," she said with a grin "Hi hon, how was your day?"

"Fine," replied Rory "Got an A in maths, physics and English," she said "And I'm pretty sure my History exam went very well today too,"

"My smart human, where did you come from?"

"The little cauliflower bed that you found me under,"

Luke poured a cup of coffee for Rory as the mother and daughter engaged in a long chat about their day when suddenly Babette sat beside them.

"Well, aren't you going to go over to your friend?" she asked Lorelai.

Lorelai stared at her in confusion "Are you talking to me?" she paused "What friend, have I friends?"

Rory shook her head "I think you're friendless,"

"I think you're right,"

"Your friend over there," said Babette pointing to a teenager with headphones on and her nose stuck in a book,"

Lorelai and Rory exchanged a confused glance "She's not our friend Babette," said Rory "We don't know her,"

Babette frowned "But she asked for you. She asked where you lived and I said you'd be at the diner at 4.30pm like always, oh sugah are you sure you don't know her? She's such a doll,"

Luke interrupted the conversation "She's been here since 2.30 taking up space, she ordered a burger and fries," he said "He never mentioned Lorelai to me," All four of them stared at her wondering who she was.

"Should I go over?" asked Lorelai.

"She could be dangerous," said Luke "She asked where you lived,"

Lorelai scoffed "She's younger then Rory, I'm sure I can handle myself and if she decides to hit me with a Barbie I'll call my knight and shining armour," she teased causing Luke to roll his eyes and walk away.

"Come on babe," she said to Rory "Let's go over to her," they both approached the table startling the young girl.

"Hi," smiled Lorelai "Babette said you were looking for me," she took a seat "I'm sorry but what's your name? I don't recognise you,"

Holly could barely believe that this was her aunt sitting right in front of her. She looked just like her mother, it was scary. The resemblance was uncanny. She wondered should she reveal her secret. What if she didn't want to know her? She took a deep breath "Uh – I'm uh I'm um- Holly. Holly Bruce, your niece,"

 **XOXOXO**

 **A/N:** Let me know your thoughts. Decided to leave a little cliff-hanger. Sorry for the late update. So much college work to be done.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Why is it so easy to write 2,000 words of this story and not my college assignment? Lol, loved writing this chapter, it just flowed. Please review! Helps when I know people are reading and enjoying. Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls.

 **XOXO**

Holly could feel her aunt's shocked gaze on her for what felt like hours – but in reality it was only seconds. Her aunt was speechless, she had said nothing for a while, and Holly wondered whether she was happy that she was here or not. She couldn't tell by her expression, she just wouldn't speak and that frustrated Holly. She wanted to talk, she wanted to bond with her, she wanted to find out more about her family and what her life could have been like – what it still _could_ be. Holly was by no means old, she was still young – hell she was barely a teenager. She had so many years left to re connect with this life – a family life.

"You're Holly," said Rory quietly who turned to her mother "That's Holly?" she asked in disbelief "But you're- and you- but-," her cousin could barely finish her sentence she seemed to be so shocked.

Holly nodded in response "I'm Holly,"

Lorelai shook her head and a grin spread across her face which relieved Holly, finally she showed some bit of emotion and thankfully it was a positive one. "I can't believe it," she said gleefully "You're Holly and you're here. You're in Stars Hallow, oh my gosh," she paused "Rory, its Holly,"

Rory nodded "I think we've established that fact,"

Lorelai turned back to Holly "But how are you here," she fell silent "Is your Mom here?" She looked out the window as if she was hoping to catch a glimpse of her sister "Tell her to come in, I won't bite," she promised.

Holly shook her head "No, Mom's not here," she said "I came by myself, she-she's promised to let me have contact with Richard and Emily but she hasn't called yet, I just wanted to take matters into my own hands,"

Lorelai smiled "Yeah your grandparents told us that you had visited, I just didn't expect you to show up here. I was hoping we would finally meet again,"

Holly sighed "I had to come, I didn't even know any of you existed," a tear formed in her eye "Until Richard came to my house one day – and well the rest is history. I searched you all up online and found out what I could, luckily it led me here,"

Lorelai looked around, aware of the prying ears that were around them, she feel Babette and Miss Patty's curious stares as to who Lorelai and Rory's mystery friend was "Why don't we take a walk, you & I," she smiled "And Rory," and with that the three girls left the diner.

 **XOXOXO**

"So, what? You moved here then?" asked Holly as the trio walked past Stars Hallow High. The Gilmore Girls had decided to take Holly on a tour of Stars Hallow as it would give her a better understanding about them, so far they had introduced her to Taylor Doose, Mrs Kim & Lane and Mrs. Weston and Holly had loved every single second of it. She absolutely adored the town and enjoyed how friendly they were. She was also shocked that they knew her mother and her, apparently she had spent a lot of time in this town as a young child which made her feel sad as she had no recollection of any of it.

Lorelai nodded happily and wrapped her arm around Rory "We sure did. Best decision ever, right Hon," to which Rory nodded "Right,"

Lorelai sighed "I remember exactly the day your mother left," she said "You and her had been at the Inn while I was working, Vic was minding the two of you and -," she paused "We had a fight, I cried, she cried, and she took you back to Hartford, that night I received a phone call from my mother saying she had gone," there was a quiver in Lorelai's voice "My mother blamed me. She said it was because of our argument which was ridiculous, it might have been part of the reason but Victoria never agreed with my parents – ever,"

Holly didn't even reply, she just stared at the ground as she tried to process the information. So, Victoria and Lorelai had gotten into a fight, she wondered what about. She began to imagine the life she could have lived if only her mother had maybe moved to Stars Hallow she could have grown up next to Lorelai and Rory, she could have had a cousin _and_ a best friend.

Lorelai continued her story "When I left home I was 18," she explained "Rory was just shy of a year old and your mother had just found out she was pregnant, she was so happy and so were my parents," she smiled "They were just happy she wasn't a teenager and she was engaged to your Dad which made it a better situation," Holly smiled at the mention of her father but didn't say anything "But then you were born and everything was perfect, they got married, they moved into the pool house and even began to plan for a second child until-,"

She paused and contemplated whether she should continue the story, she studied Holly's expression as she didn't want to upset her, Rory nudged Lorelai "What happened?" she asked curiously and Lorelai hesitated until Holly nodded and told her to continue so she did.

"Holly had just turned 2 and her dad died, he was such a great guy, Dave and I got on so well," she paused "Everyone was devastated and Victoria had to learn how to do things alone. Of course I helped, we often babysat for each other but my parents kept interfering, they often took Holly for long periods of time and kept dictating what she should wear, all of that stuff," she shook her head sadly "She often confided in me about how annoyed she was, I suggested that she move here but she didn't want that life, she wanted a busy city, she wanted to be a teacher," she sighed "So the day she left I found – I was just angry at her and we fought and until you came knocking that was all we heard in the past 11 years,"

Rory shook her head in disbelief "That's crazy," she commented "Were you not worried?"

"Of course we are, my parents have had private detectives on them for years but I knew Victoria didn't want to be found. I wasn't worried, Vic is able to take care of herself,"

The trio walked in silence for the next few minutes, both of the children still trying to understand the situation until Lorelai piped up breaking the silence "So how is your Mom kid? Is she a teacher? A boyfriend? Any more kids stashed away?"

Holly smiled slightly "No, just me and her. She works in an office, she was never a teacher,"

Lorelai gasped "She caved, so unlike her. So, you get along right Best friends like my pride and joy right here?"

Holly shrugged "I suppose. She works all the time, I barely see her really,"

Lorelai nodded "She has to provide the income, where do you live?"

"Boston,"

"That's close," observed Lorelai "I'm surprised we've never found you. Weird, huh?" she looked at her clock "Okay daughter and niece of mine, how about we go home and order Chinese?"

Holly shook her head, as nice as that sounded, she needed to go back home. Her mother would be calling the house phone and would start to get worried, it was moments like this that Holly wished she could have a cell phone but her mother didn't believe in them.

"I'll call your Mom," assured Lorelai "I'll tell her where you are. She won't like it but it's time Victoria grew up and faced reality, what's her number?"

 **XOXO**

Victoria Gilmore was sat in her office unsure of what to do, she was faced with the most complicated situation she had ever found herself in, and she had to call her parents. She didn't want to but she knew it was the right thing for her daughter. She was still in shock from seeing them through the window when she collected Holly from their house. They hadn't aged a day, she had noticed. That's Emily Gilmore for you, she wondered what their lives were like, did her father still work endless hours and travel for weeks at a time, was her mother still involved in the DAR? Her mind then turned to her sister, her baby sister and her niece, what were their lives like, were they okay? She had regrets on how she dealt with that situation, for not being involved in her niece's life but that fight she had with her sister was – the mother of all fights, there was no coming back from that. Granted, Victoria was in the wrong but she didn't regret it – if Lorelai would have tried to understand things could have been so different. Her phone began to ring interrupting her from her thoughts.

"Victoria Bruce speaking," she said cordially "How may I help you?"

She received a scoff in response "Bruce? That's more of a worse name then Gilmore,"

Victoria froze. She would recognise that voice anywhere, was it -? No it couldn't be.

"Vic?"

It was.

"Lorelai?" Victoria managed to splutter "Why but how?"

"Because I'm your sister Moran, remember the sister you haven't seen for 12 years? Thanks for that by the way, you wouldn't believe the amount of money I saved on birthday gifts,"

Victoria rolled her eyes in amusement, her sister hadn't changed, still as witty as ever. "How did you get my number?" she demanded.

"Well don't sound so excited to see me," said Lorelai sarcastically "I'm floored your enthusiasm," she sighed "Well you see, I was going to a diner in Stars Hallow, you remember the Hallow right? There's a new diner there which you will love by the way, the owner is very grouchy but it's sort of our thing, he hates selling me coffee but he gives it to me anyway. Lo and behold I walk in and my gorgeous little niece is sitting there, y'know Holly your kid, she's in my house eating Chinese at the moment,"

Victoria was silent. Her sister had talked so fast she could barely understand what she was saying, she was confused as to how Holly had gotten to Stars Hallow of all places, the town where nut jobs are found. "Why? How did she find you?"

"I don't know really but she's exhausted. I know it's late and it'll take you awhile to drive out, we have a spare bed for her, she can stay here,"

Victoria sighed "Fine, I'll collect her first thing in the morning," she agreed reluctantly.

"Can't wait to see you big sister," replied Lorelai and the line cut off. Victoria sighed, she would have to come face to face with reality tomorrow and she wasn't sure if she was prepared.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hi all, sorry for the update delay. Didn't think there was much of an interest in the story but decided to post this small chapter. Let me know if you liked it, enjoy!

The drive from Boston to Stars Hallow went by shorter then Victoria would have liked. She had no idea what she would say when she came face to face with her sister. Too many years had gone by, they were both completely different people. Gone were the days where they sat for hours gossiping and giggling while braiding each other's hair, or where they had to endure their parent's society parties but it was okay because of the after parties that the rich society kids held, or even the days where they were swapping pregnancy tips and babysat each other's kids daily. It seemed like a lifetime okay.

Victoria sighed as she entered the little town that she knew so well. When her husband Dave died, she spent all of her time here, she often thought about moving here but it was too close to Them. She noticed that it was still the same, quirky town that she had known before. Nothing had changed. Except the addition of one or two new businesses. Holly had texted her directions from Doose's Market to Lorelai's house so that she could find it.

As Victoria drove into the driveway she took a few minutes to get herself together. She knew she would be faced with questions and hugs and she wasn't sure if she was prepared for that. Once she gathered herself she approached the front door and rang the doorbell. It took a few minutes before anyone answered. She was greeted by a young woman with short black hair, smartly dressed, eagerly clutching a satchel that was half opened. She gasped slightly, this could only be one person, her niece Rory.

"Hi Rory," she said smiling softly "It's so nice to see you," It was true. It was so nice. She felt her heart beating faster than usual. She couldn't believe her tiny little niece had grown to be such a beautiful young lady.

Rory's eyes furrowed in confusion before realising who was standing before her "Oh right, you must be Victoria then?" She extended her hand. Victoria looked taken aback and shook it surprisingly. How did her niece not know her? Rory smiled "Holly's inside with my mom, I've got to run, nice meeting you,"

Victoria watched as her niece drove away in her car. She rapped on the now open door lightly before calling out "Anyone here?" She heard footsteps walking in her direction and was greeted by a bubbly young woman with a big smile "Hi Vic," said Lorelai ushering her inside "I'm sorry the place is in such a mess, I haven't cleaned it since," she paused "Since Rory was 13, come on,"

Victoria followed her sister into the house and began to study her sister's home. There were pictures everywhere, many of people whom she didn't recognise, only Mia and Rory. The house was cluttered – but then again Lorelai had never been a tidy person. She walked into the kitchen and saw Holly munching on a pop tart with a cup of coffee.

"Holly-Marie," scolded Victoria "We are going to be having a long chat when we get home lady,"

Holly rolled her eyes "Hi Mom, I'm doing good, how are you?"

"Don't get smart with me, how dare you run away like that – again? I was worried sick!"

Holly laughed sarcastically "I bet you didn't even notice me gone,"

Victoria shook her head and noticed Lorelai's amused face "Not here Hol,"

"Then where Mom?" asked Holly her voice growing louder "I have to run off because you won't let me come and visit my family – my family that I only found out existed a few weeks ago," she began munching on her pop tart.

"Holly," sighed Victoria "It's complicated,"

Lorelai raised her eyebrow "Is it? Is it complicated?" she asked "What's so bad about us Victoria? Why are you so insistent on forgetting we exist?"

"You were too," she frowned "You ran away before I did,"

"But I kept in touch with you." Replied Lorelai softly "We were best friends, inseparable for as long as I can remember, and all of a sudden you vanish," she shook her head "It wasn't fair,"

Victoria bit her lip, she didn't know what to say, she knew it was wrong not to have kept in contact with Lorelai but she wanted a fresh life. A new life. One that didn't remind her of her past, one that didn't remind her what a failure of a person she was, one that didn't revolve around status or money, she wanted out!

"Holly we're going," she said as she fought to hold back the tears. "Come on,"

Holly glared at her "You can't make me,"

"I can and I will, until you are 18 years of age you must do what I say, now come on," she roared "Be out in the car in 2 minutes, no later," and walked out of the kitchen hastily.

Lorelai and Holly looked at each other sadly "Well kid, Ill see you soon," said Lorelai with a fake smile "Okay?"

Holly sighed "But it won't be soon, will it?" Both aunt and niece enveloped in a hug and Holly reluctantly left the house. As the mother and daughter duo drove out of Stars Hallow, Holly hoped that see would see this crazy, quirky town again.


	8. Chapter 8

3 days after Holly had fled to stars hallow was the first day that they began to speak again. Victoria had felt more betrayed by holly fleeing to Stars Hallow rather then Hartford. she could deal with Richard and Emil - she had no emotional connection to them, they made her life hell and she never forgave them for that - she wasn't sure if she ever could. the emotional blackmail, the manipulation, the lies, it all began to build up and Victoria felt nothing but resentment for the parents that she left behind.

She realised how abnormal her family situation was when she met Derek - the love of her life and the man she thought she would spend t he rest of her life with. She was welcomed into his family with open arms and that is when she realised what a true family was. How supportive they were, how loving and caring.

But for Holly to go to Stars Hallow - that was beyond anything she could have envisioned. She was so happy in Stars Hallow - that was her happy place. Lorelai had always been her best friend in life - they went through everything together. from diapers, to attending society parties to attending the after parties, they had each other throughout every fight, every insult, every slap. every remark that was given, they had each other to confide in and to console.

The one regret that Victoria had in her whole life was the way she walked out on Lorelai and Rory. She thought she had to do fight was something she would always feel ashamed of. The mother of all showdowns. Harsh exchanges, violent outbursts. She knew she was in the wrong, she knew that she shouldn't have given into her feelings - as strong as they were.

But he was persistent and she was lonely. she thought he was the one. It was the same butterflies she felt when she met Derek for the first time, the instant attraction, the flirting, the touching. he had been so kind to her, he told her everything she wanted to hear. They could run away together and raise Holly in a normal, stable environment. He would get a job, she would stay at home and they would have more kids.

When she fell pregnant he became distant and would barely look at her. "How can I have another kid so soon? I don't even see the one now," he would say every time she brought it up. "why don't we terminate it?" he'd ask hopefully. He was quickly shot down and it was never mentioned again. One day Victoria fell down the stairs and had a tragic miscarriage. he became attentive. He looked after her. He said he took back everything he said and wanted to be together again. stupidly she believed him and took him back - but they were to remain secretive - nobody could know or they would try to split them up. But that all changed - when Lorelai found her in bed with Christopher she knew that it was end game. the look of disgust in Lorelai's eyes, she'll never forget Lorelai grabbing her by the hair and throwing her against the closet. The way she grabbed her clothes and through them out the window. the names she called her "slut," "whore," "backstabber!". The way she crumbled to the floor unable to speak due to the sobs. Victoria thought that this was the end of it - Lorelai was the only family member she liked. now she had ruined it - like she ruined everything. so she took her baby girl and left for a better life - she thought the grass was greener but sometimes that's not always the case and she learned that the hard way.

Looking back she knew that Christopher never loved her - it was only lust and he always wanted what he cant have, she should have known but she was so broken when Derek died that she needed a man to fix her and make her better again. Suddenly her phone rang breaking her out of her thoughts. without thinking she answered

"Victoria Bruce speaking," she said.

there was a silence at the other end of the telephone, "hello?" she said. still nothing. "look i don't have time for these silly prank calls-," but she was interrupted.

"hiya sister," came a familiar voice "its me!"

Victoria gulped, she was taken aback, she should have expected it. Lorelai was the least stubborn of the two sisters and was always able to forgive and forget and after 14 years she was sure Lorelai had certainly forgotten - she hoped. it

"I'm sorry," she blurted out "I am so sorry for what I did and how I hurt you," she sighed a breath of relief. she had wanted to say those words for 14 long years.

"Look I've been thinking a lot since you were here, I know its only been

"Its okay," she replied quietly "Its completely okay Victoria, look I have been thinking since you were here. I've been thinking a lot actually and I know its only been 3 days but that's a lot of hours and a lot of time ya know, especially when your kid is off studying all of the freaking time," she babbled but Victoria coughed deeply interrupting her.

"Look Lore, get to the point,"

Lorelai giggled sheepishly "sorry," she said "why don't we meet for a coffee to catch up? I've missed you,"

Victoria heaved a heavy sigh "i don't know," she said "after everything,"

"No Vic, that's not an excuse. how did we ever let a boy come between us," she paused "especially Christopher of all boys. if we fell out over brad pit. I could understand that but seriously?"

Victoria gulped "you're right," she sighed again "okay,"

"Why don't you drop by stars hallow? I know a great place for coffee," said Lorelai and Victoria could almost see her grin.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Victoria pulled up outside a blue diner that was situated right in the middle of stars hallow. the quaint little town hadn't changed much - give or take a few new businesses. the same people walked the streets and she couldn't help but sile at them. she had fit in so well when she first began to spend time there, they treated her so well. she had often considered moving there with holly and she wished so had.

She stepped out of the jeep and walked into the diner which was relatively quiet. she looked around and couldn't see Lorelai so she picked a table closest to the window and began to examine the menu. It was all dirty diner food which she loathed with a passion, she winced as she read through it. finally she caught sight of the salad menu at the very back.

a tall and dark haired man wearing a flannel shirt and a baseball cap approached her table "what can I get you?" he said. Victoria frowned at his tone of voice - he sounded extremely grumpy and she soon realised this was the man Lorelai had told her about "ugh my sister isn't here yet so I'll just order a coffee for now," she said with a smile.

"just a coffee?" he grumbled "okay," and walked away without another word. Victoria rolled her eyes at his attitude. she could tell she did not like him already.

Suddenly Lorelai flew in the door with a stressed face "coffee Lucas," she roared "please I am gasping," she looked around and caught sight of Victoria. she grinned widely "Victoria, it's been a minute," Victoria stood up and embraced her baby sister. after 14 years it was a hug that she missed so dearly. it was so warm and comforting and Victoria knew that she was home at last.

"geez, can you stop yelling," said Luke as the sisters broke apart and sat down. he looked at the two of them "you have a sister?" he asked pouring coffee into their mugs.

Lorelai gave him confused look "you can tell we're sisters?" she asked "huh, who's the prettier one?" she said batting her eyelids "and you know the right answer - the one who keeps you in business,"

Luke rolled his eyes "she said she was waiting for her sister," he sighed "you're the annoying one though - congratulations," and walked away.

Lorelai giggled as she raised her mug to her lips "I'm so glad to see you,"

Victoria smiled "me too, it's been 14 year too many," she paused "I'm sorry again,"

Lorelai shook her head "say sorry again and you won't see me for another 14 years - it's okay! it's over," she took a sip of coffee "tell me everything."

"everything?"

"about your life dummy, I want juicy details. boyfriends? job? dirty secrets! spill!,"

Victoria laughed - this was too good to be true but she was the happiest she had been in 14 years.


End file.
